1. Field of the Invention,
The present invention relates to improvements in envelopes adapted for reuse and, more particularly, to a reusable mailing envelope which is adapted for use for original mail and then for reuse for return mail.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR .sctn..sctn.1.97-1.99.
Heretofore, a number of reusable mailing envelope structures have been proposed. Examples of some of these envelope structures are disclosed in the following U.S. patents:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. Patentee ______________________________________ 4,993,624 Schlich 4,730,768 Gendron 4,729,507 Kim 4,715,531 Stewart 4,436,202 Berkley 4,403,696 Newell 4,334,618 Buescher 4,308,987 Solomon 1,064,302 Donahue 1,575,769 Kaye ______________________________________
The Schlich U.S. Pat. No. 4,993,624 discloses a reusable envelope for commercial mass mailings. The envelope includes a front panel, a rear panel, a two-portion closure flap and a window. The window has a bottom edge partly coextensive with a bottom edge of the front panel of the envelope. The two-portion closure flap contains a first trip sealing panel and a second trip sealing panel. A bottom edge of the second trip sealing panel connects to a top edge of the rear panel of the envelope along a fold line. A bottom edge of the first trip sealing panel connects to a top edge of the second trip sealing panel along a perforation line. For initial mailing the first trip sealing panel folds downwardly, about the fold line connecting the first trip sealing panel to the second trip sealing panel. The first trip sealing panel then seals to the front panel of the envelope. To open the envelope the addressee removes the first trip sealing panel along the perforation line connecting the first and second trip sealing panels. To reseal the envelope, the second trip sealing panel folds about the fold line connecting the second trip sealing panel to the rear panel, over the front panel of the envelope and then seals to the front panel of the envelope.
The Gendron U.S. Pat. No. 4,730,768 discloses a reusable envelope having a front panel and a rear panel. A first extension is attached to a top edge of the front panel along a first perforation line so that the first extension may be detached from the envelope on reuse. A first closure flap is attached to a top edge of the first extension along a second perforation line. Upon initial sealing of the envelope, the first closure flap folds downwardly along the second perforation line and seals to a rear panel of the envelope. A second closure flap is attached to a top edge of the rear panel of the envelope. The second closure flap is positioned in the interior of the envelope upon initial mailing. For remailing, the second closure flap is removed from the interior of the envelope and folded downwardly over the front panel and sealed.
The Kim U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,507 discloses an adhesive sealed envelope having a tear away portion extending across an area in a back panel lying under an adhesive seal of a top flap when the envelope is sealed. A tear line defining the tear away portion is hidden by the top flap. The envelope is opened in the natural way by grasping the flap and pulling upwardly to cause the envelope to open along the tear line.
The Stewart U.S. Pat. No. 4,715,531 discloses a remailable envelope constructed from a single sheet. The sheet contains perforation lines running parallel to but located inwardly from the peripheral edges of the sheet. Initially the envelope is sealed by folding the sheet in half and sealing areas between the perforation lines and the peripheral edges. The areas between the perforation lines and the peripheral edges are detached for reuse of the envelope.
The Berkley U.S. Pat. No. 4,436,202 discloses a reusable envelope for X-ray prints adapted to receive a removable card insert.
The Newell U.S. Pat. No. 4,403,696 discloses a reusable envelope assembly which includes a first tear line across a front panel and a second tear line across a back panel. The first tear line is spaced inwardly from one side of the envelope a distance greater than the corresponding separation between the second tear line and the one side of the envelope. An insert formed within the envelope is secured between the front panel and the back panel along one side. By pinching the envelope, and exerting a pulling force on the envelope from its opposite sides, the envelope is burst, separating the insert and a removable portion of the envelope along the first and second tear lines. The separation between the first and second tear lines exposes a portion of the back panel that extends outwardly from the first tear line. The extended portion of the back panel is foldable over the first tear line and the front panel as a covering flap, enabling the envelope to be used a second time. The remainder of the envelope includes a third and a fourth tear line of greater bursting strength than the first and second tear lines. The third and the fourth tear lines are used to separate the reused envelope in half for opening purposes.
The Buescher U.S. Pat. No. 4,334,618 discloses a snap-open envelope having perforation lines arranged so that an end portion separates from a remaining portion of the envelope to expose the contents. The remaining portion of the envelope provides a return or reusable envelope having an end closure flap which, when the return envelope is closed, may cover a portion of the front panel of the original envelope, with a portion of the original back panel of the original envelope becoming the front panel of the return envelope.
The Solomon U.S. Pat. No. 4,308,987 discloses a remailable envelope comprising a back panel, a front panel, a tear strip connected to a top edge of the front panel along a first tear line, a top flap connected to a top edge of the tear strip along a second tear line, and a resealing flap connected to the back panel along a first fold line. In its initial state, the reseal flap is located in the interior of the envelope, the top edge and the tear strip are folded over the back panel and the top edge is adhesively sealed to the back panel. The envelope is opened by removing the tear strip along the first and second tear lines. The envelope is reused by folding the reseal flap along a second fold line over the front panel of the envelope and sealing the reseal flap to the front panel with an adhesive.
The Kaye U.S. Pat. No. 1,575,769 discloses a reusable envelope having a first extension attached to a front panel and a second extension attached to a rear panel. The extensions attach to the front and rear panels along fold lines which form the top edge of the sealed envelope. Tear lines which extend parallel to the fold lines are located inward from the fold lines and are slightly spaced therefrom. Adhesive is applied to the space between the tear lines so that when the top flap is folded in sealing the envelope, the portions of the paper between the fold lines and tear lines will be fastened by the adhesive.
The Donohue U.S. Pat. No. 1,064,302 discloses a return reply envelope containing a body portion and a back flap portion of less height than the body, connected to the bottom edge of the body portion along a first fold line. The envelope also comprises a seal flap connected to the top edge of the body portion along a second fold line and a return address flap connected to the top edge of the back flap portion along a third fold line. The envelope is initially sealed by folding the seal flap downwardly over the back flap and adhesively sealing the seal flap to the back flap. The return address flap is located in the interior of the envelope. Upon opening the envelope the seal flap is disconnected from the body portion by either ripping along the second fold line or by removing portions of both the seal flap and body portion in a small area about the second fold line. The return address flap is removed from the interior of the envelope and folded downwardly over an external surface of the body portion of the envelope and adhesively sealed thereto.